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Scottish Watches Podcast #764 : Pac Man Krayon, Summer Swatches, New Breitling, 50 Years Of Eco Drive and Much More
00:53:19
Today’s episode is a deep dive into everything from nostalgic pop culture colliding with high-end horology to the latest industry releases and conversations shaping the watch world. We kick things...
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- [00:01]
A
Welcome to the Scottish Watches Podcast. We have got an exciting episode for you today. Lots of cool things have come out from brands that we wouldn't expect to do cool things at this point in the year. Watch and Wonders is just around the corner. So all the big heavy hitting releases should be getting kept on ice, getting ready to be rolled out at PAL Expo in just a number of weeks time. But we've got something to kick off with that I think Dave might like because he's a child of the late 70s, the early 80s. He was getting on in life by the time the 90s came around. But did you ever play Pac Man?
- [00:27]
B
I did indeed and this is a cool watch and yes, I am very well, thank you very much for asking. Anyway, yeah, let's get on with this watch, which is a crayon, which is kind of the thing that me and you usually end up eating when we're giving them in a restaurant. But we're not talking about that kind of crayon. This is a crayon watch and this is the Pac Man Anywhere limited edition. Well, you mentioned it, Ricky, you're right. 1980s was well pre computers as we know them today and there were such a thing as armusement arcades.
- [00:53]
A
Did you say arm musements?
- [00:55]
B
Armusements, amusement arcades. We're talking about these big cabinet sized machines that had like a CRT television built into them, couple of little joysticks and you played some fun and games on them.
- [01:07]
A
Speaking of joysticks and golden joysticks, I might be meeting up with Dominic diamond of UK Games Master fame because he's coming back to Scotland. He's originally from Scotland, moved to Canada and he's back here at the weekend. So potentially next week I might have some video clips of me taking a piss out of him.
- [01:23]
B
Dominic diamond, now there is a name from the blast from the past. He was in a television, I'm sure when I was in my probably late teens, 20s maybe something like that, 40s. Yeah, yeah, whatever. But yeah, he was definitely a TV. Did he not do. I can't remember what was a TV
- [01:36]
A
program he did Games Master. I just mentioned it 30 seconds ago, Dave.
- [01:39]
B
Gamesmaster. Okay, well I didn't realise that was the name of the TV show. I couldn't remember that much. That's why I was asking. The 1980s, it was all about arcade machines. You used to go to these big venue halls and they had lots of these big, huge cabinet sized machines where you could play all sorts of games. And Pac man was one of the OGs. It still is very iconic. It's kind of lasted through. It's not a game that probably many people play. Could probably run it on a little thing that costs about 10 pence to make these days. Doesn't need much computing power, but all of the icons to do with that are very iconic, so to speak. It's 45 years old, younger than me. Probably almost as old as Ricky and Crane are doing this watch in a 15 piece limited edition. Now what's going on with it? It's based around their Anywhere watch. And what has that got to do with. Well, we'll get to that a little bit later. It's mechanically identical to the core Anytime models. And they have a 24 hour display that shows sunrise, sunset and the various calendar functions. And instead of the more traditional iconography you would see in a watch like this, they' change some things out. So instead of the sun for the 24 hour hand, we've got of course, Pac Man. You've also got the ghosts, the fruits, the dots and all of these kind of things that you would expect. Sunset's represented by the power cookie. That's of course the thing that when Pac man eats it, he is able to go charging around destroying things and eating things rather than being chased and eaten himself. Sunrise is a regular ghost and you've got either Blinky, Pinky, Inky or Clyde on there. Now, of all these limited edition 15 watches are doing, each of them will actually be a piece unique technically because the combination of fruits, different ghosts and different characters will be different on each of the watches, which will mean that they'll all differentiate just fractionally from each other. So it's a limited edition within which they're all piece uniques, which is actually quite a nice concept. Center of the dial in this kind of based on a pattern very much like that maze you would expect to see in the game and the typography on the calendar and all of these things that you can see, such as the Crane logo, the 24 hour scale, they're in that classic pixelated style of the original 1980s version of the game as well. The calibre, It's a calibre C030, 72 hours of power reserve, it's manual winding and there's a lot of components in this watch, 432 to be relatively precise. And you've got the self adjusting day and night indicator. Why is it called anywhere? Well, that's because as sunrise and sunset vary depending on where you are in the world, you actually get Them set by the watchmaker to the latitude of where you reside most of your time. So there's a personalization that goes on with these watches as well. That's where the anywhere name of the watch comes from. And you can of course have this done on this watch. It's a platinum case, 39 millimeters by under 10 millimeters thick. It's only got a water resistance of 30 meters, so don't go swimming in it. Price point wise, not for the faint of heart, because, well, I think some folk are going to assume this is not so expensive because it's kind of cartoon based. But it's 180,000 Swiss francs, which is give or take. Yes, Ricky, Correct. That was Ricky's trying to escape from the cabinet that did used to have the Pac man game in it, but I managed to get him stuffed into it. A lot of money for a cartoon watch. I know that people often make comment about things like the Snoopy watches going, oh, that's ridiculous. Why would you have a cartoon character on a 6, 7, 8,000 pound dollar euro franc watch? But this one is a considerable amount more money on it. It is very cool nonetheless and has got some serious horological putts underneath the hood. I think it looks great. Frankly. I'm kind of all about this. I like crane watches. I think they're underrated. I think they get kind of bypassed at a lot of events. But what they do from a watchmaking perspective is really strong. And I think this has been very tastefully integrated with the whole Pac man theme. Ricky, you're not going to like the price, but I think you do like the watch.
- [05:25]
A
I did like the watch until I saw the price. And it's like anything, it's relative to what the cost dictates. If this was 30 grand, I think it's pretty decent. I have seen the technology that Kreon utilize in their components. We've met them a number of times. Geneva watch days, I think was the last time we caught up with them. Wasn't the greatest of experiences the last time, but the prior one to that. We got to find a little bit behind the scenes about the creative process, how to put things together and the way that that outer ring, it still is organic, the way that it moves. And sometimes in variations of this watch, they move together with the sunset and all the rest of it. There'll be links in the show notes. Check the show notes, people. That's where all the cool stuff will be. Not the jazz that me and Dave are coming up with. On the spot. But the price point, that is a sticking point. Yes, that is platinum, but it is a hefty chunk of change. And there are many watches out there in the past that have done similar things. I'm thinking Romain Jerome did a Pac man watch that was around about the $17,000 mark. Obviously times have changed, inflation has kicked in, prices have increased. But that one was a little bit more my wheelhouse. Then you've got the guys moving down the scale price point wise, the guys at Nubeo that have tied in with lots of things. They've done Capcom, Space Invaders and they do at a budget friendly price point, which with this type of watch, I think because it's fun, it's energetic, it's a bit of a nostalgia kick. Paying nearly 200 grand for it is a big ask. We're looking into territory of Audemars Piguet with maybe Black Panther, Spider man, things like that. But they have got the name, they've got the credibility and they've got a tourbillon sitting there. So this price point, I don't know if it's a win. I don't know if they'll. Especially in this market because remember, it is a bit of a down market. There isn't as much free cash kicking around and it doesn't matter if you're saving your pennies for something like a Casio G Shock or you've got lots of money tied up in investments and you're PO portfolio and you're wondering about the price of gas and oil these days. I don't know if this is going to land. I don't know if they're going to sell out. I don't know if they're going to do as well as they think. I don't know if the time is right.
- [07:15]
B
I think you're broadly right. The price is well up in the upper echelons of what people are well paying for watches, regardless of the brand. There's very few watches ultimately that are operating in higher price point than this. Yes, a few, but not so many. I think I will stick with my Timex Pac man watch which costs very little money and actually gives me that little buzz that I want when it comes to, well, having Pac man on a watch. I'm not adverse to cartoons on a watch. As I said, everything about this watch, aesthetically, horologically, I like just that price point seems a little, shall we say, out of kilter. It seems the price point that maybe Pac man, when he got the charge up, would want to eat. But anyway, we should probably move on to something else. Something coming in from Breitling.
- [07:59]
A
Well, we'll get to Breitling in a second, but I just had a quick Google to see what else is out there. And there's a lot out there. I mean, there's different Casio watches, there are standard edition Bandai Namco watches at different price points. So if you like Pac man, there are many options out there that are a lot less expensive. Not to take anything away from the guys at Crayon. They do a great job. I just think this one's a little bit pricey for a bit of a gimmicky watch.
- [08:21]
B
Agreed. So can we move on to Breitling now?
- [08:23]
A
Do we have to? I mean, is George Kern knocking at the door saying he wants to come back on the podcast? Probably. We haven't asked him in a while. Might do that shortly. But yeah, Breitling, they have been in the news because there was some kind of thing where they were talking about how much money the company had made, profits, turnover, and they had to revise certain figures, I believe, because it wasn't quite as lucrative as they had been leading people to believe in their forecasting. We talked about that in the show before. We like to bring in a bit of industry news and so everybody has a good basis for comparison. We're talking about the cost of watches and the secondary market. Obviously, if you buy something, you don't want to flush that cash down the toilet. So you won't be buying a Pac man watch. About 175 grand. Probably been up to.
- [09:02]
B
Well, they've released an all new watch. This is the Breitling Superocean Heritage B01 Chronograph 42. Why do they have to make these names so long? Anyway, it's got a reverse Panda style dial. And the interesting thing here is I think a lot of folks think about Panda dials and think motor racing, and that's not really where the OG of it is. It goes back to Breitling actually having put these on to a high contrast dial used in the 807 diver way back in 1957. That is when, well, I was probably fully mature then and Ricky was but a blink in the eye of his parents. Let's get into this watch. It's all about the 1950s influence. It is. Well, as you would expect from a diver, fairly chunky. Again, the brand is not known for making small, svelte watches. It's 42 millimeters by just under 15 millimeters tall. It does have that 200 meters of water resistance as you would expect from a diver watch. Of course, a unidirectional steel bezel does have a ceramic insert, so it should be a little more durable. You shouldn't get any fate. Well, you won't get any fading like you might get with a metal insert. You've got the spear and arrow style hands. That definitely throws back to that 50s aesthetic and design language as well. You've got a date window hiding in there at 6. I'm not a fan of date windows on dive watches. That's a personal thing. But let's be honest, it's not really going to go diving for most people. It's going to be desk diving at the most. So a date is probably useful for many people. The clues in the name about the movement is the B01. That is their in house COSC certified chronograph movement. It is a column wheel chronograph, making it one of the more prestigious styles of chronograph. 70 hours of power reserve on there. It comes mounted either on a black rubber strap or if you want that kind of throwback heritage look, a steel mesh bracelet, similar prices, 7,300 on rubber, 7,500 on the mesh bracelet. To be honest, for me, this seems like another Breitling that looks like many other Breitlings. Never been a huge fan of the whole Panda thing. Some watches look quite good with it. It doesn't get me up and excited, to be honest with you. The superocean never been the model within the range that set me on fire. There's plenty of other models within the Breitling range that I definitely prefer. If I was going to go dive watch, I'd probably be looking elsewhere, but. Hey Ricky, anything to say on this one?
- [11:14]
A
What does Ricky think about this one? It's okay. It's not bad. I was looking at it thinking we've not spoken about Breitling in a while. They have been releasing iterations, variations, derivations of different models. They did a bit of a change last year and again when we were over in Geneva because we like to try. This is the thing about what we try and do. We would rather get their miles racked up, go across to different events to touch, feel, talk to the people, ask the questions and then bring that onto the podcast. Sometimes we can't do that. Sometimes we have to work off renders, press releases, video clips and things of that ilk. But it's always best to get hands on. We do say that if you have the opportunity to pop into a boutique local establishment where they have got the watches that you can try them on the wrist, see what they feel like, see what the weight is like, how it reacts to different lighting versus what you see online. And we're as guilty as anybody because we're now bringing that content to you and you're watching it through your phone, through your telev. But it is always best to get hands on with things. And the Breitlings, sometimes they don't look in proportion. I had a look at these pictures and thought, okay, the bezel area looks very, very big compared to what you would expect. The pushers seem to extrude quite largely from the side of the case. But then looking at it on a wrist in one of the pictures, I thought, okay, that actually works on a desk, perhaps not so much. I like the crushed in onion crown on the side. It doesn't protrude that much. The pushers actually work with the layout and the crisscross pattern across the front of the face. The panda arrangement doesn't annoy me. The symmetry is really good. I quite like it. It's not my favourite Breitling though. And I know that they have been iterating on various different things and there should be some news of new releases coming out soon because we have had the folks from Breitling on the show before George Kern was on himself and then we had the heritage guy who was just a powerhouse. And that is an episode we will link in the show notes. Thanks to Mizzy L. Myself and Dave just sat there and let this guy talk because he had such an amaz Italian accent, delivered things with such panache. It was just a spectacle. So yeah, that one will be linked in the show notes. You can check it at the end. Would I buy this model? No, not for me. It's a little bit plain, Jane. The color scheme too monochromatic. It would have to have a bit of a kick, bit of color, bit of flair in it to really get me going. And Breitling have got lots of different iterations and colorways already in the existing color palette. And there'll be more coming later on this year. And it's been a while since I've actually popped into Breitling Boutique just to have a reminisce of the previous models that have come out over the past few months, years or half decade, because they do keep things in the collection for a long time, which is good for resale value. If you're buying something today, in a couple of years time, you don't want it to be the old model to have lost massive amounts of value because you want to trade up, get something new on the rest or cash out and do something else. And what we're going to do next, Dave, speaking of something else, well, what
- [13:48]
B
we're going to talk about now, well, something that we've already actually talked about and we mentioned that, well, our Sarah, the Duchess of Watches, she was taking part on a panel that is the Watch Pro Women in Watches event which took place a few weeks back and we did cover it at the time. But those panel discussions are now on the Internet. So if you want to go and watch what we were talking about, see them in action, listen to what they have to say, get the opinions, see the agreements and disagreements. Well, check out the show notes because there'll be a link in there where you can follow and of course you can watch everything that happened at that.
- [14:20]
A
I'll be honest, I haven't listened or watched the video just yet because the link only arrived yesterday. And we were doing a special project that we will talk about later on in the show. You will love it, it was fantastic. It worked very well. But we're going to talk about something else now.
- [14:33]
B
Well, before we talk about that, we should say if you have anything to say, drop us an email infoocottishwatches.co.uk because we're going to, well, try and get back into the habit of feeding back a little on the emails that we receive and talking about that one. Ricky, there's one that's come in addressed to you, so maybe actually you could read this one out.
- [14:50]
A
Maybe I shall. Hi guys. Just a quick thank you to Ricky for taking the time to chat to my wife and I at Linley Hall. This was British Watchmakers Day a few weeks back. I realise how busy he must have been. So really appreciate the kind gesture and apologies for what I later realised was a bit of a nosy, rude question. All the best, Chris Jones. Well, it wasn't that rude a question. It was something that somebody wanted to find out about. I was quite happy to explain. And that is all I'm going to say in the matter. No, it was good catching up with Chris. He's been a long term listener, follower and viewer of the podcast since way, way, way back. Big Christopher Ward, enthusiast at Lindley Hall British Watchmakers Day down in London. He was actually telling me about what he'd seen, what he'd wanted to buy, what he picked up and what he was wearing. And it's always brilliant to catch up with people who love the show. It's a really grounding experience because first and foremost, and we say this every single time, there's an opportunity to. We are enthusiasts, we're not experts. We don't claim to know everything. We don't claim to know anything. We're just here for the fun, the giggle and the horological hobby. Doesn't matter if it's a Casio G Shock, doesn't matter if it's a Gribble Forzy. They're at completely opposite ends of the price spectrum and how much creativity can sometimes go in. We love it all and we get a big smile on our face. And there was a person that we will talk about later on who had a big smile on his face because he was wearing a 200 pound watch the other day. And that is what this hobby is all about. But speaking of budget bangers, we have got something from the guys over in Japan. It's not Casio, it's not G Shock, it's not Grand Seiko. It's not Seiko. It's the other powerhouse Citizen, the one that people don't speak about as much as they should. And they really, really should. They're celebrating a big number, half a century of something that's very economical.
- [16:21]
B
We're talking all about, of course, their Eco Drive technology, that is their solar powered watches, which ultimately makes it a quartz watch. So what we've got here is to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the general concept of Eco Drive.
- [16:34]
A
Have they got a mot?
- [16:36]
B
No, no, it's not a Moser streamliner.
- [16:38]
A
You sure looks like a Moser streamliner.
- [16:41]
B
Ah, Ricky. Ricky. Well, I tell you what, anyone listening and or of course watching this on the youtubes, if you have an opinion on this, let us know. I can see where Ricky's coming from, but I think this is very different. I love this watch. Actually, I love a streamliner as well. I'm not saying that immediate connection, but I know where you're coming from. Anyway, back to the watch.
- [17:00]
A
Oh really? You just wait until we finish this show. I load Photoshop up and I post something on Instagram.
- [17:04]
B
Oh good, here we go. Anyway, what's the watch? Citizen Eco Drive Photon. And it's celebrating the 50th anniversary. More of their solar powered watches. But of course everyone knows them these days as Eco Drive and that innovation that they brought on. So it's a quartz watch that uses light absorbed through the dial to charge their power source, the batteries. Unlike many other quartz watches which you have to replace the battery after a few years. Generally the batteries in these which are rechargeable last more like 10 to 15 years. Certainly in my experience that's pretty accurate. So the first eco drive watch, although that term hadn't been used yet, was back in 1976 and it was a citizen and I think it's pronounced Christron solar cell. So of course that makes 2026, the 50th anniversary of the launch of that technology. Now in terms of the case of this one, this is a rounded octagonal shape. I think that's where Ricky's getting the similarities to the Moser. And it has an integrated bracelet that also kind of leans into the, that idea that Ricky has as well. But 39.6mm by 9.9mm thick makes it in my opinion a very wearable size. It is of course made from that material that they love to use, super titanium. And it's got lots of additional scratch resistance because they've got that duratech coating on there. Two variants of it, one in titanium grey, the other in a kind of black titanium with they call amber yellow, I'm going to call it gold. Highlights on the cases very much leaning towards a two tone effect. But it's all about the dye dial. It's multi layer. You've got a kind of very thin bezel around the edge where you've got your normal timing scales, you've got your minutes and your seconds, markers, etc on there as well. Only to the very edge, but all about the center of this dial is a double layer of slits in a ripple style pattern. Now what's this referring to? Of course everything about this watch is to do with solar power. So it's referencing back to the double slit experiment. Now we're going to get a bit sciency here. What is the double slit experiment? That was a pretty well known experiment where a beam of light, something like a laser, is pointed towards a sheet with two vertical slits and then it's detected on the other side. It's all about quantum mechanics and all sorts of fundamental ideas about the universe. Essentially though, what it does is it proves that light behaves both like waves and particles at the same time. So we're definitely sciency. But underneath that you've got layers of these slits. Then you've got a layer of a color structure film. Now that's referencing something completely different. That's a light based concept. Color structure is about how physical surfaces of materials can affect what light gets reflected back off of it regardless of the color or pigmentation. On that surface. An example here would be that the iridescent spots on a peacock's tail. Most people think that they've got that kind of purpley iridescent kind of effect to them but actually no, they're brown. But because of the way the micro textures of the feather reflect the light, we actually see this greeny blue colorway. It's all about variance caused by angles of viewing and the iridescence. So color structure film on this watch is a man made material that's creating that same effect. Now what we do also have is the light. Some of it at least passes through all of these different layers which of course leads to the charging of the battery which powers the movement on there. And it's an all new caliber. It's the E036. It's a non date version of the existing E365. Now why 365 in that name? It's because, well it doesn't really have a power reserve per se because of course it will just keep running as long as it gets light. If you put this watch in a dark drawer that is deprive it of light and it's fully charged, it will run for 365 days. So technically your power reserve when removed from light is 365 days, which is quite a long time. Now the bit about this that I really like is the price. Not keen on the two tone effect one, got to say it, but the titanium gray one I'm a big fan of price point. 749 pounds. 895 for the two tone, that's the one that I would definitely be walking past. But the other one, I would pick this watch up. It's going to be rather difficult though. There's a fair number, but there's only 5,000 of each of them and I think these will sell out quickly over the world. I think it's going to be a popular watch. The grey one for £750 UK pounds I think is a great looking watch. And I am a big fan of Citizen and their eco drive technology. I own quite a few of them. I've even worn them for many wrist checks. Ricky, I think you should like this because let's be honest, it's quite cool. And for 750 quid you can't really go too far wrong even if you want to say it. But if you can't afford a streamliner, maybe this is the watch for you.
- [21:35]
A
All joking aside. Okay, it does look like a streamliner, but there are only so many Ways you can form a case shape and how many watches look a little bit like a black bay or a sub or whatever. I like it, I do like it a lot. And I love the fact that they have not absolutely bent everybody over price point wise. When something is a limited edition, it doesn't matter if it's a thousand pieces, 100 pieces, or sometimes with Seiko it can be up to 10,000 pieces or more. With the technology, the look, the feel, the fact it's a big, big number. Half a century hu, they've kept it under a grand and we've said recently two grand is the new one grand because everything has gone up in price. It doesn't matter if it's recently with fuel and gas and oil and all the rest of it, or it's just the simple amenities in life or the things that you need every single day, milk, eggs, all that kind of stuff. Everything has gone up and up and up. Inflation is a killer, but the cost of living is even harder. And for these guys to put a cap on things. 750 quid UK 895. That is not bad. That is not bad at all. Haven't had a look at this in person. I have made a reach. I have reached out to our contact at Citizen Group to see if they can furnish us with a demo piece that we can actually have a look at, try on the rest and then report back what it's like. And that is something that we offer to different brands, well, all brands really, if anyone's interested, if there's a release that we spot, we talk about it in the show and then it comes available later on, we can do a hands on showcase. It's not a review. I don't like the word review because that implies that we're testing something. We're testing the water resistance, we're testing the accuracy, the battery life or the whatever it is. We don't do that, we just showcase the product. We let you make the decision. Very few times I can think in recent history we've actually said, go and buy this thing. I don't think we've actually ever said go and buy this thing. We've said if it's available and you like it, go and get it in case it sells out. But we always remain impartial. But it's always great to get wristwatches on the wrist. And speaking of that kind of stuff, Dave, should we do that wrist check thing?
- [23:26]
B
I guess if we have to. I always come second. You're going first. What are you Wearing this record.
- [23:31]
A
Well, it's been on the wrist since we started the episode and it's not exactly a shrinking violet, so people probably already have seen it and are wondering what the hell it is because it's not on the original strap. Dave will not be too annoyed. The fact it's on an aftermarket because it's a custom aftermarket from Deluxe. So it's a brand that charges a pretty penny for a bit of rubber on the wrist, but it's worth it. I mean, the clasp, the way that this works. Yeah, we should be talking about the wrist check. So we'll go back to the watch, we'll forget the aftermarket strap. This is the original. No, it's not. It's actually not the original. This is the original MAD one that came out for the general public. It's not the original original because that was blue and grey and that was only for the friends of Max Busser and Friends, the NBN ffs. This one is available on the secondary market. It was a pretty penny back in the day when it first came out, it was leading quite high on the charts of if you buy it for around about 3.4k, you could double your money, quite simply. But things have changed. You can get this at around about the retail price point, although it's obviously not available retail any longer. This uses a Miota movement, once again, proving it doesn't matter what engine is inside, it's how the watch looks, it's how it makes you feel. And this one makes me feel amazing every time I wear it. I've pulled out the safety deposit box because I wanted to try different things. I've also pulled out my Mirage Tourbillon one because we've been talking a lot about that because there's a movie just about to hit YouTube, I believe that we have chatted about in the show previously, all about what they've been up to. But anyway, back to this. I'm getting sidetracked and I'm digressing far too much. Much love it should wear it more. Don't going to change that. This is the red edition. It has got this. I don't even know. It's like an axe arrangement. Think a Sega Golden Axe, something like that. A ninja star. Got to be careful, the words on YouTube will get blocked again. And the party piece is when you spin it, it goes crazy. It rotates like a fidget spinner and with those bits of lume stuck on the edge of the blades, in nighttime, it just glows like you would not believe. If you're walking around. It obviously catches a little bit of momentum with that unidirectional, not bidirectional, spinner. Yeah, it's fantastic. The only niggle with this watch is telling the time on the bottom because my eye is always drawn to the hour marker at the top. And it looks as if it's coming up for. Well, it looks like it's 9O'. Clock. Well, it is 9O', clock, but when you move it forward and that pointer points to perhaps the next digit, sometimes I get confused if it's in between because my eye is drawn to the closest number to the pointer instead of what the actual time is. I can usually be about an hour off. This has been a firm favorite with the collector community. Many iterations have come out in the original series, which is the MAD one. Then we brought out the slimline version, the one, and then they had the MAD two, which I'm not quite as enamored with. It didn't tick the boxes that this one did. And, well, I own this. Many other people own this. Many people have wanted to buy it from me and I've never let it go because I believe this is the watch that will stay in the collection the longest, because this is the watch I wore on my first date with my now wife. So it has massive sentimental value. Dave, you've actually had a loan of this one. What do you think?
- [26:22]
B
I'm a fan of the original. I think the original really kind of hold all the values of what they were trying to achieve with that watch. They've become more and more refined, for sure. I believe that the Model 2 or the second version is in one regard toned down, tamed a little bit, but also, you know, really is a bit more refined as an actual final product. But this one, it's the og. It's the original kind of ethos ideology of what that watch was all meant to be about. And I think it's a cool piece. It's too big, it's too tall, it's hard to tell the time. But hey, it's a fun thing to wear on the wrist. It's a fidget spinner for the wrist, as many people have called it. And it's a cool thing. They were. Will, well, eventually no longer be available. That color is no longer available. I'm sure eventually they will retire the original model completely as well and move on to something different. That's one of the beauties of MB and F. They never make too many of anything, albeit they've made more of These models than, well, any other MB and F. But still in the grand scheme of watches, we're not in the Seiko 5 territory. Not even close. So, yeah, cool looking watch. Bit awkward to wear, but at the same time great fun to wear.
- [27:27]
A
That's my wrist check done. Dave, what you got for us?
- [27:29]
B
Well, Dave is wearing something that he dragged out of a box when he was looking for a completely different watch. This is usually the story I have is I go looking for something and find something completely different. And well, Ricky mentioned the word to me a few days ago about Tudor and a watch that he also owns from a while back that he hadn't worn for a while, his Black Rider. And that got me thinking. I've got a few Tudor watches in my little collection and I am going to go and dig out one of my favorite, favorite and one of the ugliest that has to be said, which is the Tudor P01, the big ugly chunk of metal. Don't know what I can really ultimately say about this other than it's not very pretty, but it wears super comfortably. You've got this weird locking mechanism for the bezel at the top. You can see this little arrow. You push it down and away from the watch which then allows you to make the adjustments. And it's bidirectional so you can go both ways. But of course then you, you can lock it into position and it no longer turns these weird kind of end links on here. Then mounted to a fairly traditional leather strap with the Tudor clasp. It's a fantastic watch. They no longer make it. It's no longer available. I don't think they sold a huge number of them to be honest with you. Everyone at the time thought it was big, ugly and why would you want to buy one? I'm kind of glad I did take the plunge and get one because frankly I don't wear it that often. Often a bit like Ricky, Annie's mad one. But when I do, I kind of love wearing it. It's actually genuinely super comfortable on the wrist for such a large watch. And those lugs are not small and tiny and tucked in the lug to lug to this. I hate to even imagine what it is. Huge is probably the only answer I'm going to give. So that is what I am wearing on my wrist. Check. Which is actually on my wrist for a change. Usually it's my not on my wrist wrist check, check. This time it's definitely a proper risk Check.
- [29:13]
A
Now it's the part of the show where you get to find out what your podcasters have been up to in the last week or so and it's been action packed. It's been crazy actually. We've done so much stuff. We've done a lot of prep. We talk about the Watch Wonders prep before. Leave that to the side. That's taking care of itself. But there have been many other things on the go and it's one of those I'm now in the process now that everything has settled down in the family life, the house, the marriage. It's been one year since all that jazz. Feel as if I'm a Dab Handa to every Everything is okay. I thought it would be a bit trickier than it has been. Not to say I'm an expert again, an enthusiast with life, but I've been just taking it opportunities as they present themselves, things popping up on Facebook. There's an event happening here, there's a show happening there and the wife has done the same. She has pointed me in the correct direction for different things that are happening around about our area. And I mentioned games master Dominic diamond coming back to Scotland. Bit of a childhood hero for me, coming home from school, waiting to find out what the latest games were for the PC, Atari st, Amiga, etc etc. But what's been happening this week? Well, I went to a Harley Davidson event. They had one of their open nights down at the local dealership in Glasgow. Went along with a wife and her cousin. Didn't know what to expect, hadn't been along before, had been in the dealership in the past just to have a look at the bike, see what was new, what was happening. And it was absolutely jam packed. Lots of crazy custom work, lots of airbrushing, lots of folks there. Bit weird because I was out of place. I didn't have a Sons of Anarchy outfit on, most of the people there did. And there was quite a lot of aging rockers kicking around. More like Sons of Archaeology, probably better than Sons of Anarchy. But we got to check out some really cool bikes with some live music. There was a free barbecue, you can't say fairer than that. Then we had a bit of a problem. We had spotted there was a monster truck event happening in Ayrshire and we thought, okay, this looks good, the video looks fantastic. We went along and it was the biggest dismal disappointment we have had in a long, long time. Remember about a year ago, maybe two years ago now, the world was introduced to the Willy Wonka Experience in Glass Glasgow and it hit the headlines nationwide, internationally of how bad this was put together, how much of a letdown it was. This is the truck event that we went to in air. It was so bad that people were writing scathing reviews and comments, asking for their money back and getting their messages deleted on an instantaneous basis on Facebook and other social media. I wrote something as well. Got blocked. But, yeah, that was. That was terrible. So that was details in the show. Notes of where not to go for that 1 in 20 future. Watched a couple of movies. There's a new one on Netflix, it's got Chris Pratt in it, and it's about AI taking over the court system. Quite decent. Not too bad. And then there was another movie from a few years back I watched called Luckiest Girl Alive. And this has Mila Kunis in it. And it's the most horrible good film I've seen in a while. It was a pretty dark subject matter, but decent to watch. And then the biggest thing that's happened, that incorporates Dave as well and the full team. Ted was there, Simona was there, Gavin was there. Only person that didn't make an appearance because she was working elsewhere was Sarah, Duchess of Watches. But we have recorded a live show, first of three or four that we're doing in the next few months, and it went pretty well. You guys will really love what we've managed to put together. We've encompassed all kinds of things that are incorporated in the show. Perhaps the only thing missing was video games, but we'll talk more about that in the future. And I was at a Norcane event that rounded out the week. It's been a very, very busy week. Norcane event with laying's over in Edinburgh at Scotsman Picture House. We went there, we met a guy called Hamish. Didn't sound very Scottish. Most guys called Hamish don't sound Scottish, but he was a mountaineer. Had taken on a mountain rang that most people had never heard of. And nobody had tried to do the things he was attempting to do for good reason. It was almost an impossible feat. So, yeah, there'll be pictures, details in the show, notes of all the stuff that we've been up to there. Time to ask Dave what he's been up to.
- [32:53]
B
Well, Dave, of course, was also at that large event somewhere with you, doing some very cool recordings, which will be hopefully hitting the airwaves in the next couple of weeks. That is something very exciting. And there will hopefully be lots more to come with regards to everything that we were doing at that venue. Great to see the whole gang together for that. And we found out that. Well, yeah, one of the people there knows a lot more about certain things than he had ever let on. Even when the experts were talking about it, he kind of chimed in with a few little nuggets of information. Always good when that happens. Outside of that, what else have I been up to? Well, I've been trying to, well, chill out. This is my whole thing. I try to chill out when I'm not working because I am working away too much. But outside that I have not been at any particularly exciting events. But because there's many, many things coming up, we have got some big cinema events coming up at work with that film that Ricky alluded to earlier on, which is all about the tourbillon. Hopefully trying to get something lined up that maybe we can do at a couple of event locations in the UK as well. We've got some stuff arranged in Switzerland, Germany and the United States, hopefully will some stuff in the uk. So keep an ear and eye out for that. We will put details in the show notes as and when that information is available. Outside of that though, Ricky, not a whole lot exciting. Nothing like you going, you know, monster trucks. Where? Well, there wasn't really any monster trucks.
- [34:13]
A
Well, I mentioned an event with Laying's over in Edinburgh and it turns out, yes, they do a lot in Edinburgh because they're massive in Scotland and they've been going for a very, very long time. But they're also back in Glasgow and it's a place they used to be in. But they've returned.
- [34:25]
B
Well, yes, of course they've never actually left Glasgow but Glasgow's famous Argyle Arcade where there are lots of amazing jewellers and watch shops. It's a kind of iconic area of Glasgow when it comes to jewellery and watches. They have always had, had, well, an outlet in there but they recently, around two years ago, left that space and they moved into their huge new store which is out on the main shopping thoroughfare in Glasgow, just outside the entrance to Argyle Arcade. But they've decided in the summer of 2026 that they're also going to return back into Argyle Arcade. They of course have their new huge showroom out on the main thoroughfare, but they're also going to be returning with a re established presence in that location that's been really part of that brand's heritage for many decade. The brand themselves or the retailer themselves, 1840s when they started and they've really been a cornerstone of Glasgow's luxury jewellery and watch scene since that date.
- [35:17]
A
Is that where you did your work experience?
- [35:19]
B
No, Ricky that's not where I did my work experience in 1840. No, no, no, no. It was 1856 to be precise. But anyway, they opened up their big, huge, massive flagship store on Buchanan Street. This new place, though, is going to be described as a hub of creation and jewellery craft. And jewellery craft preservation. So it'll be exciting to see what they get up to in that space. Nice to see them back in the arcade where I guess to a certain extent they should have a presence as that's where they belong when it comes to their long and storied history. So good to see them getting back into that space.
- [35:50]
A
And the space we're talking about, right on the corner edge, round about halfway through the arcade itself, is where I've been to many events. They had Tudor in there, they had Patek, they had iwc and I believe they had Rolex in there and it was very prestigious. We've been to various different places. Obviously there's like Chisholm Hunter, Hamilton Inches but Langs. There's something about it. Mapping Web and Ling Laing's, they just elevate the customer experience when you go in. And I had been in only once, quite recently, actually. I had been into Laing's big massive place on Buchanan street, the one you were talking about there, and it's almost like going to London. It's almost like being in Geneva. It's that good. So looking forward to see what they're going to do with it. I was going to say the new place, but the old place that they're bringing back because I think they own it and they thought, well, it's just sitting there doing nothing. Let's utilize it to the best we can. And now we're going to talk about a brand that I don't believe we've spoken about in the show before. Perhaps they have collaborated with somebody in a the past. I've got a bit of a memory about something there. But they have introduced something that reminds me of jlc when many, many years ago, probably six years, five years ago, they brought a movement in a watch that would slow down so much that the power reserve was massive. It was almost as if it had a gear train in it where you could change between high and low gears depending on what you wanted to do with it. But this brand we're talking one Hertz
- [37:04]
B
and the brand we're talking about, well, it's an individual, it's Dominique renaud and it's a 1 Hz Hz pulse 60. That's the name of the watch it has a absolutely massive balance spring that's running at this very unusual slow frequency of 1 Hz. He has relaunched the brand, which has been pretty quiet since around 2016. Back then, he did something well, at the opposite end of the scale. He introduced a watch called the Dr.01, which actually ran at, well, very quick 12 hertz and that used a blade resonator. It was a very futuristic shape. Shape and it had a price tag that was equally as massive. That was 1 million Swiss francs. They had 12 watches planned, but only one prototype was actually ever made. But now he's back with this watch, the Pulse 60, with his massive 1 Hz balance and unusual escapement assembly on it. And altogether more attractive price compared to 1 million Swiss francs. This one's going to start around the 49,000 Swiss francs category, which is still a lot of change, but not the kind of change you need to be buying 1 million Swiss franc watches. Now, his history in horology has lasted over 30 years, but he's been, well, generally pretty quiet since he split away from Audemars Piguet many years ago. In 2024, though, he was sticking his finger back into the pie because he did get involved more with a commercial product. This was an innovative micro rotor watch called Mundy, which he'd made in collaboration with a young watchmaker called Julien Tix. And I think that's where Ricky is getting those memories flooding back, because we saw that watch.
- [38:40]
A
We saw them last year at Geneva Watch Days.
- [38:41]
B
Yes, we did. We saw them at Geneva Watch Days. And this was actually one of the movements that tickled our fancy. And I think this individual, Dominique, was there. He has brought together a bunch of brands under a group called hhdr, which stands for Haute Horology Dominique Reynaud. And that will cover a number of brands and technical facilities. And it's been based in Switzerland. Michel Nicholas Nagato, who's the former CEO of Beaumercier, he's going to be the CEO of this entire organization. Now to this watch that he's brought out. It's pretty sporty looking. It's got a kind of sloping case shape. It's made out of grade five titanium, or you can also get a version with a combination of titanium and 18 carat pink gold. It's 40 millimeters wide. It's a 44 millimeter lug to lug. It's got a lug less design on it. So it's pretty wearable. I say pretty wearable. I'm assuming it's pretty wearable. Because I've not actually had a hands on one. Hopefully maybe at some point this year we will see this watch. It's 12 millimeters thick and it's got this massive 20 millimeter balance spring assembly on here as well. You've got a small 12 o' clock sub dial which shows the hours and minutes. It's even smaller than the balance spring. To the left you've got a sub dial with natural dead half second counter so it moves twice per second. On the right you've got a torque indicator. Now it's not really a power reserve but as such it shows you the quality of the power, the strength and consistency being delivered to the drive chain of the watch in whatever state of wind it is at that point. As we mentioned, it's running at that very low frequency and this large variable inertia balance is ticking at 60 beats per minute. That's only 7200 vibrations per hour. The escapement is also quite interesting. You can see it on the back of the watch via this linear bridge. It's not the first time it's ever been done, but it's definitely something uncommon. It's not a normal Swiss lever escapement. Normally on that type of escapement the balance will only rotate around the 310. If it goes too far, of course it hits the back of the pallet fork. In this design it's got many similarities with this lever escapement, but it's geared on a roller which allows it to go much past that. It can go round way past 360 degrees I think to something like 700. It's got four day power reserve, 30 meters of water resistance. Although it looks sporty, it's not a sports watch. Comes in a rubber strap in titanium 49,000 as I mentioned, or in the gold and titanium 59,000. So not a ridiculous uplift for adding in some precious metal there as well. Cool, crazy mental watch. Look forward to actually getting the hands on and seeing one of these hopefully at some point through 2026. He is a man that likes to experiment how practical these things will be in day to day life. How many will ever actually ultimately end up being made? Who knows. But always great to see some mad scientists out there coming up with some cool crazy and wacky ideas.
- [41:25]
A
Here we go. Price point in this one for what you get compared to compared to Pac man watch at the beginning of the show. I think this one eats its dinner. I also think the look of this one is grubel foursy like which is not a bad thing. I love the size of the balance wheel. That is something you do not see. It does look like a big, massive fan that would keep you cool when you're in various places across the world, depending what the temperature is outside. I really do like it. The back of it looks phenomenal. The way it's got the slick cut remains me. Some of the Garrick watches that I've seen in the past. And then we keep coming back to that price point for what you're getting, the ingenuity, the complication, what's going in behind the scenes, that I cannot believe they have done it at this price. Because if it was any other brand, if this was an MB and F, if it was a Gribble Forza, if it was a Vacheron, if it was a whatever, you would probably have a 1, a 2 or a 3 at the beginning of the price point. And this is somebody that has got not just years, but decades of experience within the industry. At the highest points, we're talking AP, Patek, etc. Etc. This is really good stuff. And when we met the brands, the collaboration brands, last year at Geneva, we were a little bit blown away because they had these massive 3D printed, exaggerated versions of what they were talking about to try and explain to simpletons like Dave and myself how this has come to be, how it works, how it integrates. And it's all very well looking at an animation on a screen and going, yeah, okay, I kind of get the idea of it. To have the 3D printed thing in front of you, then the watch, the prototype in hand and on the wrist, it's phenomenal. So I really hope this all works out. I really hope the future is bright and rosy because. Because this is what it's all about. And if we can actually drive the price point in the opposite direction of where it seems to be going these days, with different brands, multinationals to independents, then we can be putting crazy custom work on the wrist for less than 50 grand, for less than 100 grand, and it brings it into the price point realm of the likes of Moser, Arminstrom. Those guys that are working at that level are bringing things together. Yeah, this is probably one of my favorites of the month or of the year so far.
- [43:25]
B
Well, there you go. High praise indeed from Rakay. And now for something, something, well, completely and utterly different. We're back to Swatch Watch, back down to earth with a bump into much more realistic price points. Because even 49,000 wells, much more affordable than other watches we talked about, like that Pacman watch is still a lot of change. Therefore, let's talk about something that is definitely attainable by pretty much everyone who's into their watches.
- [43:49]
A
I just love this on the show. We pick something that is crazy expensive to begin with and then we go off up and down. We rise and fall. It's just. It's phenomenal to see what is out there just now. And the colorways that we're going to talk about with these Swatch watches, we're not approaching summer just yet. I would say spring is here kind of almost, though it was minus 1 degrees in Scotland last night. These just glow. They're absolutely fantastic. Looking behind me. If you're watching the video on YouTube, we recommend you watch YouTube and video as well as listen to podcasts. There are jokes in it that you don't get in the audio version. I have got some colorful things that we got from Ming. These kind of glow in the dark a little bit. I think they're 3D printed tinted. But it's all about color, especially leading into the more bright summer and spring months. Swatch. I use them as a souvenir if I go to different places. If I'm stopping off at an airport, I'm going somewhere. I buy a Swatch watch around about 100 bucks, maybe slightly more, either for myself or for the wife as a talisman, a bit of a token to call back to the past, to remind me of why I was there, what happened, those kinds of things. It could have been moon swatches. I think I've got two or three of them. She's got one of them. Or just editions. You go to Amsterdam, there's an Amsterdam edition watch with the triple X's on the date window. You go to Dubai in the airport, you can get Dubai Edition. There's one for Edinburgh. These are what I use instead of buying a postcard or buying a pin badge. And with the colorful ones, you can just throw them on the wrist. The only thing, and this is a rule in the household, the only thing I absolutely test with watch watches. After being in the industry for probably nearly 50 years, years now, they have not got rid of that annoying ticking noise. It is the loudest thing in the world. You could definitely not use a Swatch watch as a device that would create an explosion. Got to be careful with the words. Again, we talk about this on YouTube. Got to be super careful with your words because anybody in baggage handling would know what was going on. They would hear it from the other end of the corridor. But anyway, Dave, tell us about these colourways.
- [45:38]
B
There are four watches and it's a range called Totally Tropical. They're based around the Swatch skin family which is one of their slimmest and lightest watches. Watches which were introduced back in 1997. What are the names? Well they all begin paradise and there's the canopy, the petal, the bloom and the mist. Color wises we've got tropical lime green, we've got bright pink, we've got mottled purple and we've got a foaming sea blue on there. We've got a sun effect or sun brushed dial effect on there. Matching luminous hands and you've got of course that transparent bio sourced case paired up with a matching strap. They come in at 160. If these are your thing, if you're looking for something for holidays or for just brightening up your life a little bit, these very much could be the thing to do that. So check out the show notes to see the pictures of all of these. I definitely quite like a skin watch. I've got a few of them myself. It's well known that I like a Swatch watch. I might see myself to get one of these or maybe all four. Indeed. So Ricky, you've said your bit about them. We should probably go on to something that's a final watch that we're going to talk about. Talk about. But it's also a final watch within a series of watches from this brand.
- [46:44]
A
So after mentioning Grubel Forsey many times in this show we're going to talk about Grubel Forsey because they've got something out that looks a lot like a Grubel Forsey because it's made by Grubel Forsey but it's really expensive.
- [46:53]
B
Dave Shock Horror Grubel Forsey making expensive watches. Who'd have ever thunk about it? So what are we going to talk about? Well it's their very final edition of the Blancier convex s squared s2 but it's actually the way it's written is S with a little square. There'd be two up at the top. They've got two editions of it. They've got a black one and they've a got a white one both with ceramic cases and it is the run out model for the Convex S Squared. Now I think it's fair to say the brand seems to be in a little bit of a. Whatever you want to call it, revamp, realignment, reorganization. Back in 2025 they stopped making the Balancier Contemporane. Then Stephen Forsey, one of the people who makes up the name of the brand, they stepped down from the board. Lots of stories about that. What exactly went on, who actually knows? And they seem to be shifting back towards doing small batches of very highly priced. A little bit of an attempt to bring in some models that whilst not cheap, were at the more opening price point level for the brand. Seems that maybe that's not the tact now and they're moving back to what they were doing previously. Now this one, the Balancier Convex S squared was introduced back in 2021. I think Ricky and myself actually first bumped into one in real life on the wrist of somebody who works for the brand over in Dubai in of all places, a little supermarket when we were buying some beverages. These two limited editions. There's only going to be 11 pieces of each of them, of course, in those two colors we mentioned, the white ceramic and the black ceramic. The black ceramic does have little hints of rose gold on there. The bezel, the case back flange. Whereas the white one is, well, all white. It's got of course, that curved variable geometry case on there. You've got the crystal, that's the variable geometry as well. It's a 41.5 millimeter in terms of the case band. It's a 44 millimeter in terms of the bezel width. It comes in at, well, they quote 13.25 mm thick. But if you want to include that sapphire glass on there, it's actually 14.8 mm. As to why brands do this, I do not know. Please do include the size, including the crystal. All of the visible gearing is kind of on display up in the front as well. The hours and minute hands, they're kind of mounted centrally but on a suspended arching bridge. You've got that 30 degree inclined Grubel Forsey balance wheel system that you see on so many of their watches. 30 meters of water resistance, 72 hours of power reserve. And the price? Well, yes, it is that kind of price you expect from the brand. 295,000 Swiss francs.
- [49:16]
A
How much?
- [49:17]
B
Yes, indeed. That's that echo again I hear reverberating around the room. How much indeed. And remember, this is one of those entry level price points from the brand.
- [49:27]
A
Oh, it's the cheap one.
- [49:28]
B
It's the cheap one. Yes. Cheap being relative, of course. I have to say, as I was mentioned, I do love what the brand do. They are operating at a price point in a sphere that is a completely different world to what myself or Ricky will ever be buying. Watches. And if you ever see us with one of these watches that we proclaim to own, either we've stolen it or we've done other steely things to probably get the money to actually buy one. They are amazing nonetheless. I do remember us seeing this watch and I think Ricky, you were quite taken by it. A little bit smaller than what they usually make. They are amazing on the wrist. And the white ceramic one here, whilst you will not be buying one, probably very much appeals to the Ricky sensibilities.
- [50:08]
A
That's the one I want.
- [50:09]
B
There we go. Sweet, simple and succinct. That's the one I want. Do, do, do, do. There's a wee song from Ricky and Dave as well. Heavily out of tune. But what more do we need to say? Ricky wants the white ceramic one, but no, he can't have one. And if he did buy one, his now wife would probably. Well, end of life care would be
- [50:28]
A
something that may be needed rather soon. But not end of life care, but end of podcast shoutouts for different shows. You can go and check out in our back Ca. We've mentioned numerous already but let's go through the most recent history. We have Harlan from Wrist Review. He was on just chatting casually because we catch up with him at different places across the world. Most recently down at Watchmakers Day briefly prior to that, Bristol. Prior to that, watches and wonders. He's a good guy and he speaks from the heart when he talks about watches. It's not his full time gig just yet, but hopefully, hopefully soon the guys will take him on full time. We also had Temi Sean from the Glasgow Watch show giving us the run through of what's happening. What's different about this year's event compared to last year's which was a massive success? We're expecting more of the same. We're going to be doing a live podcast recording with him in front of a live audience. So you don't know what way that's going to go. If you're interested in attending, links will be in the show notes. Go and grab your tickets, they're available now. And we will be recording around about midday for around about an hour. So if you've got any questions or anything you want to throw at us. Not rotten vegetables. That was done back when Dave was a child. Yeah, come along, enjoy yourself. It'll be an interactive experience. We've got our coverage from British Watchmakers Day. Dave, that was a good friend, wasn't it?
- [51:35]
B
British Watchmakers Day, probably the ultimate show in the uk, certainly when it comes to highlighting the works of all of the British brands that are now within the scene. There's one other show that happens in the uk, It's a much more international fair and it's a very different feel. But British Watchmakers Day, that was its third outing and it has already announced the dates for 2027. Get that in your diary because you will need to act fast if you want to get tickets. The demand has increased year on year for that that show. Always an amazing day out.
- [52:04]
A
Barbara Plumbo was on for second visit of the year and we had the gentleman from Farnsworth, the fantastic digital watch company that also make normal analog watches. Far too many to mention in the back catalog. You just have to click the links in the show notes, go to the website, have a look there, but Also jump on YouTube. Follow us there, subscribe Like Comment all that jazz because it really does help. The algorithm is the only way that new people find out about the show. The more people that find about the show, the more people that we invest interact with, the better watches we can get on to review. It's a big cycle and it's a good one. It's not a bad one. And that's us. So thanks for listening, thanks for watching and we'll catch you again soon.
- [52:39]
B
Take care.
- [52:56]
A
Sam.